


Peace and Quiet

by KeiKou9275



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Hurt/Comfort, I think I met the Kolivantok quota, The Blades are a black ops group, and mentions of injuries, but i guess they could be cousins, but nothing gratuitous, keith and regris have different mothers, the Galra are a mercenary dictatorship, the Marmora were a nomadic tribe, there is some blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-21
Updated: 2019-01-21
Packaged: 2019-04-25 18:18:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14384328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeiKou9275/pseuds/KeiKou9275
Summary: The greatest rewards are those we fight for.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [aretia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aretia/gifts).



> This is a birthday present for aretia. I hope you enjoy!

Kolivan wondered every day how he had been so blessed in his life. If someone had told him how his life would turn out ten years ago, he would have laughed and then punched them in the face.

Ten ago, he had been serving with a combined group of European, American, and Japanese (like himself) military black ops, focused on finding and executing the most notorious criminals and terrorists. The group was known as the Blades, built on secrets, blood, and brotherhood.

During a tour in the Middle East searching for a terrorist named Zarkon, his squadron had stopped in a small village called Daibazaal for water and information. The villagers were wary of them, eyeing their weapons with fear and distaste. Kolivan and his fellow Blades had walked the perimeter of the village when they had stumbled upon a cage.

They had discovered a man inside the small cage, beaten, his face badly scarred and near death. Kolivan had demanded why the man had not been treated, his blood boiling when one village elder had said: “He wandered onto our lands, he is from a cursed tribe and must die.”

If Thace hadn’t held him back, Kolivan had been certain he would have torn the village elder limb from limb. Their commanding officer had heard the commotion, taken one look at the beaten man, and shot the lock off himself, ordering Kolivan and Thace to get the injured man out of there and to Ulaz, the Blades medic.

Kolivan had assisted the doctor with treating the man, gently cleaning the blood from his face and muttering dark promises of revenge on the villagers. The man had multiple injuries, including several broken bones, lash marks and cuts across his back and shoulders, bruises on every patch of skin they could see.

It had taken a moment for Kolivan to notice that their patient was large, at least several inches taller than even Ulaz, who topped out at 6'7" without his mohawk, and his arms and legs well toned and muscled. The fact that all of the larger man’s injuries were defensive and none of the villagers had a mark on them showed that he had not tried to harm them, even as they had beaten him within an inch of his life, had had Kolivan quietly raging, his hands shaking even as he had gently cared for the man.

The Blades left Daibazaal soon after with their new patient, Kolivan only leaving his side to relieve himself. Kolivan had been there when the man had finally woken up, keeping him calm as he had explained who he and his comrades were. In turn, Kolivan had learned that the man, called Antok, had been a warrior of a nomadic tribe known as the Marmora, protecting travelers on their way to the holy cities when Zarkon and his band mercenaries called the Galra had annihilated most of the Marmora.

Antok had somehow survived, left for dead by his enemies, and had wandered the desert until he had been found and captured by the villagers. Kolivan had gripped Antok’s hand after he had finished his story, offering silent comfort and support to the larger man. It was another two months of intensive healing before Antok was healed enough to integrate with the Blades, training and fighting alongside them with ease for the next six months.

During that time, Kolivan had felt his feelings for Antok shift from brotherly comradery to something more. Kolivan saw more than just his scars, he saw a man who was strong yet kind, who preferred diplomacy over violence, and was loyal to a fault.

It had been that loyalty that had saved his, Thace, and Ulaz’s lives the night Zarkon had attacked the Blades. The Galra had ambushed them, slaughtering Kolivan’s fellow Blades left and right. Kolivan had fought against Zarkon himself, their swords clashing in the night when Zarkon had struck Kolivan on the right side of his face, causing the Blade to fall on his back, clutching his now ruined eye.

Zarkon had stood over him, sword poised for the finishing blow when Antok had charged forward with a roar, knocking the Galra leader away from his comrade and into a group of surprised mercenaries. Barely conscious due to his injuries, Kolivan hadn’t felt Antok pick him up and place him in the bed of one of their trucks, defending him and Ulaz with his luxite scimitar until Thace had gotten in the driver’s seat, pushing the Galra back one more time before hopping in the back as the truck sped away.

The four of them were the only ones to survive the ambush, Thace, Ulaz, and Antok only bruised here and there. Kolivan had been the most severely injured, his right eye decimated and his body covered in cuts and stabs from his fight with Zarkon. With nothing to bandage the wounds with, Antok had taken the shirt off his back, cut it into strips and wrapped Kolivan’s wounds with them. He had held Kolivan during the cold desert nights, keeping hypothermia at bay.

When the truck had finally run out of gas, Antok had carried Kolivan, cradling the smaller man in his arms as he walked with Thace and Ulaz until they had reached an allied base. Kolivan had taken months to heal, all the while Antok had remained at his side. He had assisted Kolivan however he could, from helping him in and out of his clothes to fetching him a glass of water if Kolivan had needed it.

When the bandage over his eye had finally been removed, Kolivan had felt worse than useless, he had felt like a liability and a danger to his comrades now that he was half blind. Antok had growled at that, forcing Kolivan to turn and face him. “You are more than your scars, and your wounds do not define you.” He had rumbled to Kolivan, looking him dead in the eye. Antok had then leaned down until his forehead was touching Kolivan’s, quietly stating “You are still the man I came to love, ever since my eyes opened once more.”

That was all it had taken for Kolivan to break apart and be put back together by the Marmora's tender care. With no walls to keep them apart any longer, their relationship had grown, even as they had remained in the Middle East to fight against Zarkon’s growing empire. Finally, after nearly a decade of fighting Zarkon was brought down by Altea’s elite force known as Voltron and the new Blades.

It had been brutal, Kolivan nearly losing Antok, Ulaz, and Thace in the attack but they and most of the new Blades had survived. And it was from the ashes of war that Kolivan and his mate had found hope. Kolivan had been making rounds in Zarkon’s decimated capital when he had heard a baby’s cry, following it to find not one but two infants in an apartment complex, their mothers having died to protect the little ones.

The leader of the Blades had rushed the infants to the medics, where despite them being slightly dehydrated, both babes were given surprisingly clean bills of health. When he returned to the quarters where his fellow Blades were resting, Antok had immediately fallen for the little ones, cooing quietly as assisted in feeding them. Thace and Ulaz were besotted with them as well, particularly the little boy with the violet eyes.

Antok had been similarly smitten by the other baby, who astonishingly had the hallmark golden eyes of the Marmora. Antok had wept tears of joy when he had seen those familiar golden orbs, fearing that he was the last of his tribe. Kolivan had leaned against his husband, a smile on his face for the first time in years.

With the children in tow (Thace and Ulaz [who had been courting for years during the war] had adopted the violet-eyed child who they named Keith, while Kolivan and Antok had adopted the other child who they called Regris [a Marmora name meaning “blessed light”]), the four Blades traveled to Japan, where Kolivan’s clan owned a large compound on the outskirts of Hokkaido, large enough to fit everyone with room to spare.

Now a year later, Kolivan watched from the entrance of the courtyard as Antok and Regris slept in the shade of a willow tree. Kolivan quietly made his way over to his husband and son, gingerly sitting next to them. He smiled to himself, the years and the war had not been kind to him or Antok, both gaining new scars with each battle. But they had survived, their scars telling a tale of the life they had fought for.

With that thought in mind, Kolivan laid his head on Antok’s shoulder while his hand rested on Regris’s back as the toddler slept on his father’s chest. Before drifting off, Kolivan felt Antok pull him closer, nuzzling his now white hair and sighing contentedly. Kolivan smiled as he was lulled to sleep by the peace and quiet of his life.


	2. Though the Scars Remain, You Will Heal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a Kolivantok modern au. In this au Kolivan and Antok were in the military and have been honorably discharged, but before that Kolivan was held captive by a psycho terrorist (not going to go with a specific ethnicity for this guy, danger comes in all shapes and shades) who forced Kolivan to watch as he slowly murdered Kolivan’s platoon one by one, nearly breaking Kolivan.
> 
> After nearly two months of this, Antok and his squad finally find Kolivan, taking out the terrorist and rescuing his husband. Finally, both are allowed to return home but Kolivan suffers from PTSD and survivors guilt. This is how Antok works to help Kolivan.
> 
> This is purely a vent fic for me. I’ve been having major problems lately and today is just bad. So enjoy or don’t, I don’t really care.

Antok wandered around Kolivan’s family complex, still getting lost occasionally if he wasn’t careful. It was rather ridiculous to be honest, he had been living here with his husband and their son for close to two years now, it shouldn’t be that hard to find his way around! But unfortunately Antok had married a man who owned a good chunk of land and they made sure there was plenty of room for all of the household, which meant a very LARGE house and grounds.

Stopping at an intersection, Antok stared out into the courtyard, admiring the warmth of the breeze and the scent of blossoms in the air. Growing up in the middle east, Antok had very little experience with flowers, only seeing them on graves, where they wilted quickly under the desert sun. Here though, flowers were everywhere, in most kinds of weather, and the large man enjoyed every moment of them.

Antok began turning back towards the main house when he caught movement in his peripheral vision. He turned to see Kolivan walking towards the large sakura tree that stood in the courtyard, though his movements seemed… off to Antok. Frowning, Antok jumped down from the walkway and began to make his way over to his husband. He didn’t call out, not wanting to startle Kolivan. Finally they stood side by side, Kolivan staring off into space as Antok gazed down at him.

Kolivan looked as if he had just woken up, his long white hair unbraided and his clothes were ruffled and slightly unkempt. There were dark circles under his eyes and his lips were a tight, thin line. ‘Oh,’ Antok thought, his eyes softening with concern. 'Another night terror.’ Looking up at the tree, Antok’s mind flashed back to that time two years ago. Before he had found Keith and Regris. Before they had all made it home.

—————————————————————————

Kolivan and his squad of Blades had been on patrol, gathering intelligence about the Galra when all communication had been lost with them. Antok had been an absolute wreck, wanting nothing more than to rush out and search for Kolivan. Two months had passed with no word until finally a local in the area came forward, informing Thace that there had been suspicious activity seen by the local caves. Antok, Thace, and Ulaz had gathered their squads, and made for the caves.

After searching for hours, they had found Kolivan trussed up in a large cavern surrounded by the bodies of his men. Covered in blood and numerous wounds, Kolivan had been unresponsive as they cut him down. As Ulaz had begun to treat their leader, they had been attacked by a lone assassin, striking quickly and with deadly accuracy. Antok had held off the bastard as the rest of the Blades recovered and got back into formation. The assassin had been quite mad, screeching about his goddess Haggar and how the sacrifices of the sinners would bring her wrath upon the world.

Finally, Antok had pinned him underneath his sword. The assassin had kept rambling though, going on about how the chosen sacrifice had screamed and fought as he had watched the others fall, his mind finally breaking and succumbing to the will of his goddess.

Antok had slit the assassin’s throat with no remorse, watching as the monster twitched until he moved no more.

While Ulaz and his squad looked after Kolivan, Antok and Thace had taken their men deeper into the caves, searching for any survivors but finding none. When they had returned, Antok had carried Kolivan out of that dark place while the remaining Blades had carried their fallen brothers out one by one. When all but the assassin had been removed, they had created a funeral pyre for the fallen, allowing their remains to be carried by the desert winds as their souls had ascended to the stars above. Kolivan had regained consciousness then, tears falling down his face as he had whispered apologies to his men. Antok had just held him closer.

—————————————————————————

Even years after that horrible day Kolivan still suffered from nightmares and the guilt. He had become a master of hiding it, of pushing it down where no one could see it but could only do it for so long before it took a toll on him.

They stood silently together, Antok exuding calm and love to try to put Kolivan at ease. He said nothing, allowing Kolivan to gather his thoughts and voice but try as he might, Kolivan could not speak. His shoulders shook with quiet sobs, trying his best to keep quiet but feeling his walls crumble as Antok gathered him into his arms. Kolivan gripped those arms tightly, afraid that he would be back in the assassin’s cave, would wake up to see those he loved, Antok, Regris, Thace, Ulaz, and Keith lying on the ground, eyes lifeless as they bled out.

Antok gently led Kolivan to the base of the cherry tree, taking a seat with his back resting against its trunk while urging Kolivan to sit on his lap. Kolivan went easily enough, wrapping his arms around himself as if to shield himself from the nightmares and memories. Antok tucked his husband’s head into his neck, ignoring the wetness that grew in his collar as he wrapped his large arms around Kolivan to gently rock him back and forth.

He began humming a lullaby from his youth, one his mothers would sing to him until he came of age and even after they would hum the tune as they went about the day. Antok could feel Kolivan begin to relax, the tension of holding himself rigid leaving his body until finally all Antok could hear was soft, even breathing. He knew he should take Kolivan to their bed, let him rest in peace and quiet but Antok didn’t want to risk waking Kolivan. Luckily it was a pleasant day, not too warm with a slight breeze to keep them cool.

So Antok settled in, closing his eyes and resting his head against the trunk. The nightmares would not stop, not anytime soon but Antok would always be there for Kolivan, whether it was at his best or at his worst, Kolivan would not face this alone.


End file.
